This disclosure relates in general to data storage and, more specifically, but not by way of limitation, to data cartridges and data systems.
The prior art in archival media are tape cartridges. Tape cartridges need to be periodically rewound in order to re-pack and re-tension the tape. Archive facilities typically have a simple tape rewinder device which loads the tape cartridge and winds it from end-to-end and then unloads it again. These devices have no ability to read or write the data or make any determination about the status of the recorded data.
Some tape cartridges contain an electronic memory chip separate from the tape medium which can be used to store some metadata. Often these memory chips are coupled to a RFID system to enable wirelessly reading of the memory. These memory chip systems have no ability to provide state information relating to the data recorded on the tape. There is no ability to refresh the data recorded on a tape cartridge without first loading the cartridge into a tape drive system, reading the contents of the tape using the software application that created the tape originally, and either copying the contents to a system disk drive or directly to a second tape drive. Refreshing the data on the tape is done back at the data center, thus requiring that the cartridges be transported back to the data center for management and then back again to the storage facility.
One of the technical limitations of electronic or electromechanical or solid state media such as hard disk drives (HDDs) or flash memory is their finite life. In the case of the HDD, the storage life of the media is limited by phenomena such as magnetic thermal decay (MTD), which is the physical phenomenon whereby the strength of recorded magnetic bits decrease over time. Another HDD limitation is the ability of motors and bearings to operate after being in an inactive state for a period of months or years. A further limitation is corrosion of the heads and media over time. In the case of flash memory, one limit on archive life is the finite time that the electric charge persists in the memory cells.
In the appended figures, similar components and/or features may have the same reference label. Further, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label by a dash and a second label that distinguishes among the similar components. If only the first reference label is used in the specification, the description is applicable to any one of the similar components having the same first reference label irrespective of the second reference label.